By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Road services were hit in Orissa’s interiors as Maoists began a 48-hour nationwide shutdown to protest the killing of their top leader in Andhra Pradesh.
“Traffic was thin in some areas of Malkangiri and Rayagada districts as heavy vehicles went off the road. Similarly, government buses are not plying in Rayagada district,” a senior police official told IANS.
However, life was unaffected in most parts of the state, the police official said.
There were no reports of any untoward incidents in the state.
Maoists are active in more than half of Orissa. The southern districts of Malkangiri, Rayagada are the worst affected.
Maoists called the strike Wednesday and Thursday to protest the killing of their top leader Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad in an alleged shootout July 2 in Andhra Pradesh. The rebels claim that police killed Azad in a staged gunfight after arresting him in Nagpur in Maharashtra.